Deal drawer



l1g 25, 1954 E. c. HIGGINS ETAL '3,145,918

DEAL DRAWER Filed Aug. 8, 1962 FIGI w s $.m m www M m MHC M 2 v /m MCH?,.w a KL l .../,.D n /I M\ ../d @Il 4 3 G l El w M.

Attorney United States Patent `O p 3,145,918 DEAL DRAWER Eldon C.Higgins and David H. Crew, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, assignors to Le FebureCorporation, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a corporation of Delaware Filed Ang. 8,1962, Ser. No. 215,716 Claims. (Cl. 2212-431) The present inventionconcerns deal drawers especially of the type used in bank drive orwalk-up teller window structures, and particularly concerns a mechanismfor co-ordinate, interconnected movement of the drawer and its closuremeans for access thereto by customers and the teller.

Most teller window structures of the type with which the presentinvention is concerned employ a receptacle or drawer-like member whichis movable outwardly with respect to the window toward the customer andinwardly thereof toward the teller. Often such drawers incorporate twoclosure members, an outer one for access to the drawer by the customerand an inner one for access thereto by the teller. These closure membersare susally so arranged that the one for the teller is closed when theone for the customer is open, and vice versa. In this manner directcommunication or access through one to the other is prevented.Additionally, it is desirable, for the ease and speed of operation, toprovide some means by which the respective closures may be automaticallyoperated when the drawer, whether by hand or power means, is movedbetween its teller and customer positions.

The present invention provides a deal drawer having its front or outerwall in the form of a door for access by the customer to a receptacleportion of the drawer. In turn, a rear portion of the top wall of thedrawer over the receptacle portion is formed as a lid for access theretoby the teller. A linkage and cam mechanism, mounted to one side of thedrawer and to the immediately surrounding drawer housing, respectively,is provided which automatically causes the lid to close and the door toopen as the drawer is moved to its customer position, and the door toclose and the lid to open when the drawer is retracted to its tellerposition. Movement of the door and lid is accomplished by links pivotedthereto and to each other and ultimately connected through an additionallink and a rock arm to aV control crank pivoted to the drawer.Therlinkage is so arranged that when the drawer is moved between itscustomer and teller positions by suitable power means, for instance, thecontrol crank is caused to rotate and thus to operate the linkage bymeans of a cam mounted stationary upon the drawer housing. When movementof the drawer is accomplished manually, the crank is provided with anextension lever so that it may be grasped by the teller to move thedrawer to and fro, the crank at the same time being rotated by the camin order to operate the linkage controlling the movement of the lid andthe door.

Accordingly, the primary object of the present invention is theprovision of operating means for a deal drawer of the kind describedhaving a door in its front wall and a lid in its top wall for accessthereto, which means permit automatic and co-ordinate closing of the lidand opening of the door as the drawer is moved forward towards thecustomer, and automatic co-ordinate closing of the door and opening ofthe lid as the drawer is moved inwardly towards the teller.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a linkagefor a deal drawer of the kind described incorporating a front door foraccess by customers and a top lid for access by the teller, the linkageconnecting the door and the lid toan operating crank pivoted on one sideof the drawer so that rotation of the crank causes 3,145,918 PatentedAug. 25, 1,964

alternate opening and closing of the door and lid, respectively,rotation of the crank being achieved by engagement thereof with astationary cam mounted on the drawer housing as the drawer is movedbetween its teller and customer positions.

Other and further objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will be apparent from the description of the preferred formthereof hereafter described, read in conjunction with the followingdrawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective View of a portion of a typical teller windowunit showing a deal drawer mounted beneath the tellers counter behindthe front wall of the teller enclosure;

FIGURE 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 2 2 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 3 is a longitudinal section of the drawer, certain portions beingbroken away, taken along the line 3 3 of FIGURE 2, and showing theposition of the linkage, the door and lid when the drawer is in theteller position; and

FIGURE 4 is similar to FIGURE 3, but shows the position of the linkage,the door and the lid when the drawer is in its customer position.

Inasmuch as drive or walk-up teller windows are wellknown, only a briefreference to their over-all structure is necessary. FIGURE l illustratesa partial view of a conventional teller window unit incorporating aVertical outer wall composed of a lower section 10, of concrete ormetal, for instance, surrounded by a transparent window structure 11 anda horizontal, inwardly extending teller counter 12. Herein, and in theappended claims, unless the context requires otherwise, the terms inner,inwardly, rear, and the like refer to a direction toward the tellersposition behind counter 12. Likewise, the terms outer, forwardly, front,and the like refer to a direction toward the customer beyond window 11.A generally rectangularly shaped deal drawer housing 13 is suitablyfixed beneath counter 12 and is provided with an open, forward endopening in turn through wall 10, its rear or inner end being closed by apanel 14 which may be made removable. Slidably suspended in housing 13is an open front deal drawer 15, having opposite side walls 16, 16provided with outer, downwardly facing shoulders 17 thereon. Suitableroller assemblies 18 or other like means which engage shoulders 17permit drawer 15 to be moved between its rearward teller position,wherein the forward end drawer 15 is flush with the outer face of wall10, and a customer position wherein the forward portion of drawer 15extends beyond the outer face of wall 1t). Spaced inboard from, andparallel to, side wall 16, 16 are a pair of opposed inner panels 19, 19in the forward portion of drawer 15 which cooperate with a somewhatS-shaped sub-floor and rear wall 20, extending first horizontallyrearward from the open forward end of drawer 15 and then graduallyupwardly, to form a forward receptacle portion or compartment 21.

The open end of compartment 21 is closed by a customer access door 22horizontally hinged at 23 along the forward edge of compartment wall 20for outward movement therefrom. Door 22 extends below hinge 23 so thatwhen drawer 15 is retracted within housing 13 in its teller position,the lower portion of door 22 overlaps the outer face of wall 10. Theupper edge of the latter is surmounted by a suitable resilient bumperand seal 24. A pair of spaced gusset walls 25, 25 extending verticallybetween hinge 23 and seal 24 and suitably radiused at the top, protrudeinwardly from, and move about hinge 23 with, door 22, their spacingbeing suflicient to permit themV to overlap the outboard faces of innerpanels 19, 19 and thus provide additional side enclosures forcompartment 21 when door 22 is open. The forward portion of counter 12above compartment 21, when drawer 15 is in its teller position, is cutaway in order to provide access by the teller to compartment 21. Thelatter is covered by a framed glass cover plate 26 fixed to extend overapproximately the forward one-third of compartment 21 between the top ofdrawer 15 and the lower edge of window 11 when the former is in itsteller position. The remainder of compartment 21 is covered by a lid 27,also formed of framed glass, hinged along its forward edge to the rearedge of cover plate 26 so that it opens upwardly. Lid 27 is arranged sothat when it is closed and drawer 15 is moved to its customer position,lid 27 is prevented from opening by the presence of the lower edge ofwindow 11 thereabove (see FIGURE 4). Finally, a pair of removable toppanels 23, 28', extending rearwardly from the rear edge of compartmentwall 2Q, cover the remaining portion of drawer 15.

The operating linkage for door 21 and lid 27 will now be described. Amounting plate 29 is secured to the rear of the inner face of wall 16and extends forwardly therefrom. A somewhat irregularly shaped, flatoperating crank 30 is pivoted at 31 adjacent the upper rear corner ofplate 29 and is spaced therefrom for swingable movement longitudinallyof drawer 15 in a plane inboard of panel 19. To the lower end of theinboard face of crank 30 in turn is pivoted at 32 one end of a link 33which extends forwardly, its other end being pivoted at 34 to the lowerend of a rock arm 35. The latter is pivoted intermediate its ends at 36to the forward portion of plate 29 and is spaced therefrom to beswingable in the same plane as crank 3f). The upper end of arm 35 iscranked toward wall 16 to be swingable in a plane between walls 16 and25. Pivoted at 37 to the upper end of arm 35 is another link 38 whichextends forwardly between walls 16 and 25 and is pivoted to the latterat 39, the axes of pivots 37 and 39 being parallel to those of crank 39and arm 35. The lengths of crank 3f), links 33, 38 and arm 35, togetherwith the location of their respective pivots, are so arranged that whenpivots 31 and 32 on crank 39 are in a generally vertical line, hereafterspoken of as the teller position of crank 30, the linkage maintains door22 closed (FIGURES 2 and 3), but that when crank 3i) is partiallyrotated counterclockwise, hereafter spoken of as the customer positionof crank 39, door 22 is moved about its hinge 23 to its open positionfor access to compartment 21 (FIGURE 4). The upper end of a third link40 is pivoted at 41 about an axis parallel to that of pivot 31 to theside of lid 27 corresponding to panel 19. The lower end of link 4Q isprovided with a longitudinally extending lost motion slot or notch 42,the inner end thereof engaging a pin 43 extending horizontally from link38 intermediate its pivots 37 and 39. The length of link 40 and notch 42and the location of pivot 41 and pin 43 are such that when crank 30 isin its teller position, link 40 raises lid 27, as in FIGURE 3, and,conversely, when crank 30 is in its customer position, lid 27 is allowedto close, as in FIGURE 4. The extent of the counterclockwise rotation ofcrank 3l) is limited by an adjustable bumper 44- protruding from therear edge thereof to contact the underside of top panel 2S.

Rotation of crank 30 between its teller and customer positions iscontrolled by a pair of cam plates 50 and 51 and a roller cam follower53. The latter is pivoted about an axis parallel to that of pivot 31 andextends from the outboard face of crank 30 through an arcuate slot 54 inside wall 16. Cam plate 50 is secured along the inner face of the sidewall of housing 13 opposite side wall 16 of drawer 15, and a forwardportion of its cam track 55 extends both in a direction parallel to thatof the movement of drawer 15 and at a level suflicient for it to beengaged throughout its length by follower 53 when crank 30 is in itscustomer position. The direction of the rear portion of track 55diverges gradually downwardly from that of the forward portion toapproximately the level of follower 53 when crank 30 is in its tellerposition. Cam

plate 51 is likewise fixed to said wall of housing 13, its cam track 56being concentric with and spaced from the rear portion of track in orderto provide a guide channel 57 to maintain follower 53 in its paththroughout its travel along cam track 55. It will be appreciated thatthe rear portion of track 55 must diverge sufficiently rapidly so that,as drawer 15 is moved to its customer position, crank 3i) is swung toits customer position in order to close lid 27 before the latter canstrike the bottom edge of window 11. Accordingly, therefore, as drawer15 is moved forward from its teller position, the rear portion of camplate 5t) causes crank 30 to rotate counterclockwise to its customerposition, thus closing lid 27 and opening door 22 for access tocompartment 21, owing to the transmission of motion through links 33, 38and 40 and arm 35. Continued movement of drawer 15 outwardly simplyextends it further toward the customer without any further movement ofcrank 30 and its associated linkage, inasmuch as follower 53 thenceforthengages the straight, forward portion of cam track 55. Retraction ofdrawer 15 merely moves it inwardly until cam track 56 and directs itdown channel 57, thus rotating crank 30 in a clockwise direction tocause door 22 to close and lid 27 to open.

As mentioned earlier, drawer 15 may be moved by power or manual means.In the case of the former, any suitable and conventional apparatus maybe employed for such purpose inasmuch as only reciprocal straight linemotion need be imparted to drawer 15 in order to move it and to operatecrank 30. In the case of manual means, crank 3ft may be provided with anupward lever extension 5S, topped by a hand knob 59, through a slot 60in counter 12. Thus a horizontal push or pull on knob 59 will movedrawer 15 outwardly or inwardly, respectively, the rotation of crank 36still being wholly controlled by cam plates Sti and 51. Additionally, inthe case of manual operation, the direction of cam track 5t) and 56 attheir lower ends is made substantially perpendicular to the direction ofthe forward portion of cam track 55. In this manner, when drawer 15 isin its teller position, it is effectively locked in that position byfollower 53 so that drawer 15 cannot be moved nor door 22 swungoutwardly until lever 58 is moved slightly forward.

While the present invention has been described with reference to aparticular embodiment and detailed descriptive language has been used,it is not so limited. Instead, the following claims are to be read asencompassing such modifications and adaptations of the invention aswould ordinarily occur to one in the art.

We claim:

l. In a bank teller window unit including a generally upright outer wallhaving a generally horizontal counter extending inwardly therefrom, adeal drawer operatively associated with said counter having horizontalmovement relative to said counter and wall between a customer accessposition wherein a forward receptacle portion of said drawer projectsoutwardly of said wall through an aperture therein and a teller accessposition wherein said portion is retracted inwardly of said wall, saiddrawer having a bottom wall and a pair of side walls, the improvementcomprising a door at the front of said drawer hinged to said drawer tobe movable outwardly and downwardly from its closed position to an openposition for access to said receptacle portion and means for movement ofsaid drawer relative to said counter and for coordinate movement of saiddoor relative to said drawer, said means including a linkage having arock arm pivoted intermediate its ends upon one of said side walls, afirst connecting link pivotally connected to both said arm on one sideof its wall pivot and to said door and a second connecting linkpivotally connected to said arm on the other side of its wall pivot,said pivots being located and operable to permit movement of said secondlink in one direction to simultaneously move said first link in a rstdirection to open said door about its hinge axis and to permit movementof said second link in the opposite direction to simultaneously movesaid rst link in a second direction to close said door when said draweris moved between its customer and teller positions, respectively.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein said drawer is provided with a top wallenclosing said receptacle portion, said top wall including a lid portionlocated inwardly of said outer wall when said drawer is in its tellerposition and hinged at its forward edge to open upwardly along an axistransversely of said side walls for access to said receptacle portionwhen said drawer is in its teller position, and means operativelyassociated with said first-named means for coordinate opening of saidlid while said drawer is moved to its teller position and for coordinateclosing of said lid while said drawer is moved toward its customerposition.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein said last-named means includes a thirdconnecting link pivoted to said lid and to said first link intermediatethe pivots of the latter to said door and rock arm, said third link andits pivots incorporating lost motion means so that said third link isnonoperative upon said lid while said drawer is moved toward itscustomer position after said lid is closed.

4. In a bank teller window unit including a generally upright outer wallhaving a generally horizontal counter extending inwardly therefrom, adeal drawer operatively associated with said counter having horizontalmovement relative to said counter and wall between a customer accessposition wherein a forward receptacle portion of said drawer projectsoutwardly of said wall through an aperture therein and a teller accessposition wherein said portion is retracted inwardly of said wall, saiddrawer having a bottom wall and a pair of side walls, the improvementcomprising a door at the front of said drawer hinged to said drawer tobe movable outwardly and downwardly from its closed position to an openposition for access to said receptacle portion and means for movement ofsaid drawer relative to said counter and for coordinate movement of saiddoor relative to said drawer, said means including a linkage having anoperating crank pivoted to one of said side walls adjacent the rear ofsaid drawer and rotatable between a teller position and a customerposition, a rock arm pivoted intermediate its ends upon said side wallintermediate said door and said crank pivot, a rst connecting linkpivotally connected to both said arm on one side of its wall pivot andto said door of said drawer and a second connecting link pivotallyconnected to said arm on the other side of its wall pivot and to saidcrank, said pivots being located and operable to permit rotation of saidcrank about its pivot toward its customer position to simultaneouslymove said door about its hinge axis to its open position and to permitrotation of said crank about its pivot to its teller position tosimultaneously move said door to its closed position, and means torotate said crank about its pivot between its said positions when saiddrawer is moved between its respective said positions.

5. The device of claim 4 wherein said drawer is provided with a top wallenclosing said receptacle portion, said top wall including a lid portionlocated inwardly of said outer wall when said drawer is in its tellerposition and hinged at its forward edge to open upwardly along an axistransversely of said side walls for access to said receptacle portionwhen said drawer is in its teller position, and means operativelyassociated with said linkage means for coordinate opening of said lidwhile said crank is rotated to its teller position and for coordinateclosing of said lid while said crank is rotated to its customerposition.

6. The device of claim 5 wherein said last-named means includes a thirdconnecting link pivoted to said lid and to said first link intermediatethe pivots of the latter to said door and rock arm, said third link andits pivots incorporating lost motion means so that said third link isoperative upon said lid only when said crank is between its teller andcustomer positions.

7. The device of claim 4 wherein said rotating means comprise a rollercam follower pivoted to said crank and a cam track stationary withrespect to said drawer having a forward portion extending in thedirection of said drawer movement and a rear portion gradually divergingfrom said direction, said follower being so pivoted to said crank andsaid track being so positioned relative to said follower that said trackis operatively engaged by said follower throughout movement of saidcrank and drawer between their teller and customer positions, the lengthand contour of said rear portion being such that when said drawer ismoved toward its customer position said follower causes said crank torotate about its pivot to its customer position and thereby open saiddoor.

8. The device of claim 7 wherein the direction of said rear portion ofsaid cam track, at the point thereon engaged by said follower when saidcrank is in its teller position, is substantially perpendicular to thedirection of said forward portion, whereby said drawer may be lockedagainst said track in its teller position.

9. The device of claim 7 wherein said drawer is provided with a top wallenclosing said receptacle portion, said top wall including a lid portionlocated inwardly of said outer wall when said drawer is in its tellerposition and hinged at its forward edge to open upwardly along an axistransversely of said side walls for access to said receptacle portionwhen said drawer is in its teller position, and means operativelyassociated with said linkage means for coordinate opening of said lidwhile said crank is moved to its teller position and for coordinateclosing of said lid while said crank is moved to its customer position.

10. The device of claim 9 wherein said last-named means includes a thirdconnecting link pivoted to said lid and to said rst link intermediatethe pivots of the latter to said door and rock arm, said third link andits pivots incorporating lost motion means so that said third link isoperative upon said lid only when said follower is engaged with saidrear portion of said cam track.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,266,780 Love Dec. 23, 1941 2,591,901 Wickes Apr. 8, 1952 2,648,300Beedle Aug. 11, 1953 2,730,053 Ellithorpe Jan. 10, 1956 2,949,870 GraberAug. 23, 1960 3,059,840 Graber Oct. 23,y 1962 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3, 145,918 August 25, 1964Eldon C. Higgins et al.

It lis hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patentrequiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read ascorrected below..

Column l, line 23, for "Susally" read -1- usually column 4, line 2l,after "56" insert eengages follower 53 -l.

Signed and sealed this 22nd day of December 19641.`

QSEAL) Attest:

ERNEST W. SWIDER vEDWARD J, BRENNER Attesting Officer CommissionerV ofvPatents

1. IN A BANK TELLER WINDOW UNIT INCLUDING A GENERALLY UPRIGHT OUTER WALL HAVING A GENERALLY HORIZONTAL COUNTER EXTENDING INWARDLY THEREFROM, A DEAL DRAWER OPERATIVELY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID COUNTER HAVING HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO SAID COUNTER AND WALL BETWEEN A CUSTOMER ACCESS POSITION WHEREIN A FORWARD RECEPTACLE PORTION OF SAID DRAWER PROJECTS OUTWARDLY OF SAID WALL THROUGH AN APERTURE THEREIN AND A TELLER ACCESS POSITION WHEREIN SAID PORTION IS RETRACTED INWARDLY OF SAID WALL, SAID DRAWER HAVING A BOTTOM WALL AND A PAIR OF SIDE WALLS, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING A DOOR AT THE FRONT OF SAID DRAWER HINGED TO SAID DRAWER TO BE MOVABLE OUTWARDLY AND DOWNWARDLY FROM ITS CLOSED POSITION TO AN OPEN POSITION FOR ACCESS TO SAID RECEPTACLE PORTION AND MEANS FOR MOVEMENT OF SAID DRAWER RELATIVE TO SAID COUNTER AND FOR COORDINATE MOVEMENT OF SAID DOOR RELATIVE TO SAID DRAWER, SAID MEANS INCLUDING A LINKAGE HAVING A ROCK ARM PIVOTED INTERMEDIATE ITS ENDS UPON ONE OF SAID SIDE WALLS, A FIRST CONNECTING LINK PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO BOTH SAID ARM ON ONE SIDE OF ITS WALL PIVOT AND TO SAID DOOR AND A SECOND CONNECTING LINK PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO SAID ARM ON THE OTHER SIDE OF ITS WALL PIVOT, SAID PIVOTS BEING LOCATED AND OPERABLE TO PERMIT MOVEMENT OF SAID SECOND LINK IN ONE DIRECTION TO SIMULTANEOUSLY MOVE SAID FIRST LINK IN A FIRST DIRECTION TO OPEN SAID DOOR ABOUT ITS HINGE AXIS AND TO PERMIT MOVEMENT OF SAID SECOND LINK IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION TO SIMULTANEOUSLY MOVE SAID FIRST LINK IN A SECOND DIRECTION TO CLOSE SAID DOOR WHEN SAID DRAWER IS MOVED BETWEEN ITS CUSTOMER AND TELLER POSITIONS, RESPECTIVELY. 